Is the administration preparing for something with North Korea? That was the impression of many in Washington ahead of a Wednesday afternoon White House briefing of nearly all 100 U.S. senators by military and national security officials. Those briefing the senators included Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of Defense James Mattis, General Joseph Dunford of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats. The White House national security advisor, H.R. McMaster, also attended, while President Trump made a short appearance.
The purpose of the hearing, said a senior administration official, was to “communicate the seriousness of the threat from North Korea and to allow the senators to ask questions of the national security team and to understand better the nature of the threat but also what our response to that threat has been.”
